Krushangi Maisuria is finishing high school this year. But her wisdom vastly exceeds her age.
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1. Failure isn’t fatal. Failure doesn’t have to be the end; it can be the beginning, if you use it as a lesson. As a child, the fear of failure was something too great for me to comprehend, but I’ve realized that failure can be a wonderful teacher.
2. Compliments are important. If someone says you look nice today or that painting you worked on for a few weeks looks fabulous, you’ll feel great, even if you were having an awful day.
3. On the other side, a small, snide comment can make you feel terrible. A negative comment from someone close to you, even if you have just won an Oscar or climbed Mt. Everest, has the capacity to make you feel horrible.
4. Don’t place too much importance on opinions. Constructive criticism is helpful to grow, but focusing too much on what others think can have negative consequences.
5. Appreciate the small moments. Those small moments will linger in your memory, so years later, when you feel sad or lonely, you can warm yourself with those beautiful moments.
6. You can’t always win. Sometimes you’ll be wrong. Things might not always work out the way you imagined them to be. People won’t always act like how you expected them to.
7. Hard work does not always equal success. You might study for hours for a test, or prepare extremely well for an interview, but that doesn’t always mean you’ll get an “A” or that you’ll get the job.
8. Don’t judge others. You don’t know what they’re going through. Also, just because you think you know them or their story because someone else gossiped about it doesn’t mean you actually do.
9. Have some fun. Dye you hair pink. Wear a tuxedo to school. Eat ice-cream cake for breakfast. As long as it’s in moderation, it’s okay to let some things go. That way, you won’t regret the “what ifs” later in life.
10. Confidence really is key. With a little confidence, you can go a long away.
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Photo credit: Laura/flickr